


Got Shot

by sfiddy



Series: Ficlet Files- Sherlock [1]
Category: Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Ficlet, Friendship, Gen, awkward moments
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-09-14
Updated: 2012-09-14
Packaged: 2017-11-14 05:53:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/512015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sfiddy/pseuds/sfiddy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I heard you were abroad somewhere getting shot at. What happened?"</p><p>-Mike Stamford, "A Study in Pink"</p><p> A few things run through John Watson's mind during that pause in the conversation in the park.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Got Shot

**"I heard you were abroad somewhere getting shot at. What happened?" ******

****_-Mike Stamford, "A Study in Pink"_** **

John shrugged. “Got shot.”

********

And cue the awkward silence. For the first few weeks, John had sort of enjoyed seeing people’s reactions. His nasty side had reveled in those seconds, watching the internal conflict in his victim. The clever anti-war zealots would chew the inside of their cheek as they searched for some way to maintain their high moral ground in the face of his convictions. Interestingly, the ones who supported the war had similar reactions. 

********

The dumb ones just kept talking.

********

The ladies sometimes swooned. Hero lust had got him a pity shag here and there, but he’d really outgrown that. Not that he hadn’t enjoyed it. One even licked the scar on his shoulder, though that had been less pleasant than he’d imagined. The nerves in the area were still damaged and the resulting blend of oversensitivity and numbness was astoundingly disconcerting. He’d heard of one bloke who’d broken a bone in his skull and some nerves reconnected wrong as they healed. Every time he drank tea he though it was splashing over his eye.

********

Had the nerves in his shoulder somehow crossed with ones in his arse, that might have been interesting, but no such luck. Now he avoided the topic with women in general. The shag wasn’t worth dealing with the pity anymore.

********

Once someone heard he’d been shot, the eyes always inadvertently wandered, wondering where and what the damage was. They usually assumed wrong, and the eyes lingered over his leg, hip and groin. There was nothing wrong with THAT, thank you very much. The girl who licked his shoulder could attest to that.

********

Only other veterans seemed to understand and would ask if he was still on antibiotics. They’d remind him to eat and sleep properly and not skip his physical therapy. Practical. Practical advice, not silence.

********

Poor Mike. His smile had faded and he as self conscious now. “Well, don’t I feel like a first class prick.”

********

John shook his head. “It’s fine. You’re not the first.”

********

“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” Mike looked away. John could tell this was the make or break moment. The conversation could wrap up easily here with a polite exchange of phone numbers, a promise to meet for a pint at some unspecified future date, and the complete loss of an old friend.

********

He really wasn’t prepared to let that happen. “Is that shop over there still open?”

********

Mike turned to look. “Yup. The sandwiches are rubbish but the coffee’s good.”

********

John bobbed his head in the direction of the shop. “I’m dying for a cup. Want to join me?”

********

Mike’s smile returned hesitantly. “Sure, if you don’t mind me tagging along.”

********

John didn’t mind at all.

********


End file.
